Background: Patients frequently use YouTube to learn about their illness. For this reason, the educational and quality of YouTube videos about various diseases has been investigated. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the accuracy and quality of YouTube videos.
Methods: A standard query was performed on the YouTube database using the following search terms: Plantar fasciitis, heel spur, and calcaneal spur. For each search term, the top 50 videos determined by YouTube's "relevance" according to its algorithm were evaluated (150 videos in total). After exclusion, 140 videos were included in the study. These videos were watched by 2 observers and the videos were evaluated and scored according to the Global Quality Score (GQS), DISCERN, Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), and Plantar Fasciitis and Calcaneal Spurs Specific Score (PFSS) scoring systems.
Results: According to the JAMA criteria, 76.42% of the videos and 43.57% of the videos according to the GQS scored 2 points or less. According to DISCERN criteria, 67.15% of the videos were evaluated as very poor/poor. According to the PFSS, 83.5% of the videos were rated as poor or very poor.
Conclusions: These findings can be interpreted as the general information content of the videos about plantar fasciitis is insufficient and their reliability and quality are low. As a result, it can be concluded that the quality and reliability of YouTube videos regarding plantar fasciitis are insufficient for patients. Universities/associations prepare videos that provide information about plantar fasciitis to patients, and that these videos are presented on certain platforms can be a solution.